Research

Panel to discuss new book on peace communication, Israeli-Palestinian conflict

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — A panel of leading scholars in communication will discuss the forthcoming book “Experiencing the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Children, Peace Communication and Socialization” by Yael Warshel, assistant professor of telecommunications and media industries, research associate in the Rock Ethics Institute, and affiliate faculty of international affairs, international and comparative education, African Studies, and Middle Eastern studies at Penn State.

The virtual event, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 14. Pre-registration here is required. 

Published by Cambridge University Press, “Experiencing the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict” provides an in-depth study of communication interventions aimed at reducing intergroup bias among Israeli and Palestinian children. This analysis assesses how the target audiences receive and interpret such interventions, with the goal of offering recommendations for more effective and critical peace communication that take into account structural and narrative contexts as applicable beyond just the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Joining Warshel on the April 14 panel to discuss her book will be Karin Wilkins, dean of the School of Communication at the University of Miami, and Jake Harwood, professor of communication at the University of Arizona. Krishna Jayakar, professor and head of the Department of Telecommunications and Media Industries at Penn State, will moderate the panel.

Together the panelists will explore themes raised in Warshel’s book, such as the role of socialization as a key variable in political conflict intractability, what lessons we can learn from past failures in peace communication and whether or how they can help improve future interventions, and the need to support bicultural intersectional conflict zones hybrid populations (like Arab/Palestinian Israelis) to intervene in and help mediate armed conflicts.

The Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, Rock Ethics Institute, School of International Affairs, Comparative and International Education Program, Middle Eastern Studies, and Children, Youth and Media in International and Global Conflict Zones Initiative, all at Penn State, are sponsoring the event. Everyone is welcome to attend and can register here to watch the panel online. Contact Rock Ethics Institute assistant director Ben Jones at btj7@psu.edu if you have questions or require a disability-related accommodation for the event.

Last Updated April 15, 2021